7 Out of 10 Shoppers Support Internet Sales Tax

According to a national poll released by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), 7 out of 10 Americans are in favor of federal legislation that would require online retailers to collect sales tax at the time of purchase. The Marketplace Fairness Act (MFA) seeks to do just that.

Under current federal law, sellers without nexus in a state may not require out-of-state sellers to collect and remit sales tax on sales made to customers in that state. Numerous states have made work-arounds with click-through nexus and similar legislation, whereby out-of-state sellers generating a certain amount of business through links on in-state websites trigger a sales tax collection obligation. Yet this remains a litigious practice that many states avoid.

The Tax Foundation, a non-profit, non-partisan research organization, has urged the Supreme Court to step into the Internet sales tax fray: the “Court’s guidance is needed to reduce uncertainty for taxpayers and discourage state efforts to obstruct a constitutional system of interstate taxation.” Thus far, the Supreme Court has refused to get involved. However, it recently agreed to hear oral arguments for Direct Marketing Assn. v. Brohl, which challenges Colorado’s use tax notification law, in December. The Brohl in the case is the Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Revenue.

All this is a long-winded way of saying that Internet sales tax is not a new issue. This isn’t the first poll we’ve seen, nor is it likely to be the last.

Gail began researching and writing about sales tax in 2012 and has been fascinated with it ever since. She has a penchant for uncovering unusual tax facts, and endeavors to make complex sales tax laws more digestible for both experts and laypeople.